In the beginning...
The Victorian seaside was a popular place for gigs in the summers of the late 60s and early 70s. Hordes of people got out of Melbourne and flocked to the waves of the seaside towns during the day, and needed somewhere to dance the “sand off their feet” at night.
It was the bright idea of well known and well established Melbourne dance promotors Jeff Leech and Derrick Harris to create the original TomKatz. They chose the RSL building, then on Ocean Beach Road, and the now-legendary live music dance venue was born.
The very latest popular bands played and gigs were held most nights throughout January, with weekend gigs right up until Easter. Before they became household names, bands like AC/DC, The Vibrants, Max Merritt and the Meteors, The Zoot and The Twilights played to packed houses.
“It was the best dance on the peninsula ... I remember hundreds, sometimes thousands, would line-up down the street to attend ... it was the place to be seen!”
TomKatz today
Now, with the blessing of the original promotors, TomKatz is back at the Sorrento Portsea RSL, breathing new life into the live music scene on the southern peninsula. Located in Hurley Street, Sorrento, and with a newly renovated venue for members and music lovers, TomKatz is once again the home of original live music!
